Bookpleasures is excited to have as our guest DanBuzzetta. Dan is a seasoned attorney with over 30 years of experiencehandling complex commercial litigation as a partner at BakerHostetler in New York. 

Inspired by his fascination with organizedcrime and real-life legal cases he worked on with the Department ofJustice and FBI, Dan fulfilled a decades-old dream by writing hisdebut legal thriller, The Manipulator.

The novel follows Thomas Berte, a brilliant lawyercaught in a deadly battle against a global crime syndicate. 

Beyond law and writing, Dan serves his New Jerseycommunity as a volunteer firefighter and elected official, balancinga rich professional and personal life while preparing for the nextinstallment in his thriller series.

Good day Dan and thanks for taking part in ourinterview. 

Norm: What first sparked the concept for TheManipulator, and why did you decide to tell the storythrough the lens of a newly minted Deputy Attorney General ratherthan, say, an FBI agent or a defense lawyer?

Once that core idea took shape, what was the biggestchange the novel underwent from first outline to final draft?

 Dan: I’ve always had a fascination with theMafia—its mystique, its lore, its power, and how it shapes peopleand communities it penetrates. 

I've also always viewed the justicesystem as the great equalizer, a force more powerful than any crimefigure. I was drawn to the law and becoming a lawyer because of thepower law has to create order and right wrongs committed by those whochoose to deviate from that order. 

And so, I set out to write a storyabout a powerful lawyer who confronts a powerful mafia figure but ina way that’s more than just another mob story. 

I wanted to explorethemes of family, loyalty, and discovering hidden secrets, includingabout the protagonist himself. And I wanted to do so from the pointof view of someone who’s righteous and courageous and has the lawon his side. 

I thought having Tom Berte go from a big firm lawyer tobecoming a DOJ official pursuing the mastermind of a criminalsyndicate would make for an interesting story. 

And that’s thebiggest transformation that occurred in the novel from outline tofinal draft. Initially, Tom Berte was going to be retained by thecriminal mastermind as his defense attorney. 

But I wanted Tom to facea moral dilemma and make a choice between good and evil and so I madehim a government official.

 Norm: The novel opens with a suspenseful, ominousphone call between Nino Benedetto and Ignatius Balatoni. Howimportant was it for you to set the tone with this scene?

What narrative techniques did you use to maintainsuspense throughout the book?

Dan: I really focused on that opening chapter andrewrote it numerous times. I wanted to make it dark, intense, andcreate intrigue. I hope the reader comes away from that first chapterwith a multitude of questions and wanting to know more. 

I purposelymade it a short chapter because I wanted to immediately heighten thesuspense and put the reader in the middle of that initial encounterright away without building to it. 

I also wanted the reader to beinvested in the story and to be curious about what happens next. Itried doing that throughout the book in two ways. 

First, I set out towrite short chapters, so readers feel the suspense in short bursts,instead of through long, drawn out narratives. I think shorterchapters heighten suspense. 

Second, I tried to have most chapters endwith a mini cliff-hanger to keep the reader wanting more. I hope Isucceeded on both fronts.

Norm: Cosimo “Nino” Benedetto is chillingly calmand calculating. What techniques did you use to make a criminalmastermind feel authentic without glamorizing him?

Were there scenes or angles you deliberately chosenot to show in order to preserve his mystique?

Dan: I tried to write Cosimo Benedetto as a personin conflict with himself. While he appears calm and calculating onthe outside, he's also insecure, afraid, full of self-doubt, anddistrustful of others. 

While he exudes confidence in public, hequestions whether he can maintain the empire he's built and the lifehe’s created. 

Part of it is because he's missing the one thing hedesperately wants, and that humanizes him and makes him ordinaryrather than an all-powerful, glamorous figure. 

But at the same time,I didn’t want the reader to pity him or sympathize with him, andtherefore I didn’t dwell on his internal ruminations about thechoices he made in his life.

Norm: The relationship between law and organizedcrime is central in The Manipulator. How did yourprofessional background inform your depiction of this complexdynamic?

Were there any real cases or events that specificallyinfluenced aspects of the story?

 Dan:  My career as a lawyer has put me in thecenter of many interesting investigations where I’ve chasedfraudsters, pieced together evidence to prove schemes that wereintended to remain hidden, and uncover secreted funds and obtaincourt judgments so that victims of financial frauds could becompensated. These themes are all at play in The Manipulator.There have been so many cases I've worked on that I thought wouldmake great subjects for books or movies. 

In one particular case, ateam of lawyers I worked with were tasked with recovering proceedsfrom a securities fraud that left investors holding worthless paperand the bad guys secreting hundreds of millions of dollars inoffshore bank accounts. 

Working closely with the FBI and federal lawenforcement authorities we recovered the money and were able topartially compensate the victims for their losses. Aspects of thatcase make it into The Manipulator.

Norm: Ignatius is simultaneously mentor, puppetmaster, and maybe pawn. How did you keep his motives ambiguouswithout frustrating the reader? If the series continues, can weexpect Ignatius’s backstory to expand, or do you prefer him as anenigma?

Dan: Ignatius is one of my favorite characters. Iwanted him to be avuncular and respected, but also deeply flawedbecause of choices he made which he believed in his heart were theright choices made for the right reasons. 

But his pact with theproverbial devil turned out to be his downfall. I intended to writehis character as someone who the reader would hope turns out to be agood guy and perhaps even sympathize with. 

Until, of course, thetruth is revealed toward the end of the book and that’s when anysympathy he engendered is perhaps lost for good. I think Ignatiuswill remain an enigma for now so that readers who like his charactercan imagine whatever backstory about him they prefer.  

Norm: You plant many subtle clues—Tom’s mother’sreaction to his appointment, not wanting for money, the yacht phonecall. What’s your process for mapping breadcrumbs so the payofffeels inevitable yet surprising?

Do you rely on beta readers or specialized softwareto track those threads, or is it all on a giant spreadsheet in yourhead?

Dan:  I enjoy leaving clues, some subtle othersmore overt, so the reader can unravel them in real time. I enjoyreading books with that element in them, and I purposely strove toincorporate that technique in The Manipulator. 

Just likeTom’s wife, Brooke, I want the reader to be an active participantin the story, trying to figure out what the truth is and not be justa passive bystander.  

As far as I how keep track of it all, it’sin a huge, beautiful spreadsheet in my head so I never have to worrythat I’ll lose it if the power goes out. 

Norm: The theme of power and corruption permeates thestory. How did you aim to explore this through Tom’s struggleagainst Benedetto’s syndicate?

Do you see this as a commentary on modern justicesystems?

Dan: I sought to pit the enormous power and immensewealth of Cosimo Benedetto and the criminal empire he ran against thepower and immense strength of the United States justice system whileincorporating themes of family, loyalty with the goal of always doingthe right thing no matter the cost. Power and corruption are notreserved just for rogue organizations like the Syndicate. Even ourjustice system can be influenced by power for the sake of power andfor corrupt ends. 

This happens every day in courts across America,especially in smaller jurisdictions involving persons who don’thave means to hire the best lawyers. 

But to the extent TheManipulator contains a commentary on our justice system it’sthat however imperfect it may be, and it often is, justice usuallyprevails. 

Norm: What structural tricks did you employ to keeppages turning while still deepening character? Were there slower,character-driven chapters you loved but ultimately cut for pacingreasons?

Dan: I like developing characters over severalchapters to keep readers engaged. I also like throwing in twists andturns so that just when you think you fully understand a character'smotives and what makes him or her 'tick', the reader learns somethingnew and unexpected. 

I enjoy reading books containing that element,and I tried incorporating that in my book.

I actually cut several pages that delved into thebackstory of Ignatius Balatoni, a character I really enjoyed writingabout. 

But while perhaps cinematic (in my imagination) andinspirational for me to write about a beloved and respectedmentor-type figure, in the end those pages didn’t add much to thestory of Tom Berte’s pursuit of Cosimo Benedetto and thevindication of truth and justice over corruption and greed so I sentthem to the shredder.

 Norm: For aspiring legal-thriller writers, what’sone craft lesson you learned the hard way while writing TheManipulator?

Conversely, what element of the book flowed sonaturally that it reminded you why you love writing in the firstplace?

Dan: The biggest lesson is to save the backstoryfor later parts of the book instead of including it early in thestory. I’m a linear thinker and my mind begins with A and proceedssequentially to Z. 

But when writing thrillers, the beginning needs tostart with intrigue and suspense. This isn't where most story tellingusually starts. Stories usually begin with some background facts.Learning this lesson led me to restructure my book when I was abouthalfway through it.

One element that flowed naturally for me was writingmini cliff hangers at the end of most chapters. I enjoy reading bookscontaining this technique and I knew I wanted to incorporate it in mybook. 

Norm: You’ve been described as a “mafiaaficionado.” What drew you to organized crime as a subject, andwhat unique perspectives did you seek to bring?

How do you avoid clichés when writing about crimesyndicates?  

Dan:   I’m the son of Italian parents,and my dad was born in Sicily. When he immigrated to the UnitedStates he started his own construction company. 

When I was 9 yearsold my family moved from Brooklyn, NY to the Todt Hill section ofStaten Island where several mobsters and “mob-connected” folkslived, including Paul Castellano, then head of the Gambino crimefamily. 

In fact, I was in Paul Castellano’s house when I was 11 or12 because I was friends with his grandkids who lived a few housesaway from me. 

So, I, literally, grew up surrounded by the aura of themob. My private elementary school (located on Todt Hill) was verysmall, and word got around that I had moved from Brooklyn, my parentswere Italian (hard to miss it since my given name is Danilo), and mydad owned a construction company. You could imagine the taunts Ireceived and the rumors that swirled around me. 

It was hard beingraised in an Italian family in New York in the 80’s and 90’s,when the mafia was often front-page news, and not be exposed to thecultural influence of the mafia.  

I developed a fascination withthe mystique of the mafia, and I became a student of its origins andhistory in Sicily where my dad was born, and its history in New York. 

But I didn’t set out to write a mob story. Great ones alreadyexist, like the Godfather,  Goodfellas, and TheSopranos. My experience is from an historical, education, andcultural perspective, and I tried to include a bit of that in mybook.

Norm: Where can our readers find out more about youand The Manipulator?  

Dan: DanBuzzetta.com has links to my social mediaaccounts, podcasts, and news about the next books in the Tom BerteLegal Thriller Series.

Norm: As we wind up our interview, what would youlike readers to take away from The Manipulator aboutjustice, integrity, and the legal profession? Has your perspective onthese issues changed since writing the novel?

 Dan: Early in The Manipulator, IgnatiusBalatoni says the law is a noble profession, and lawyers are the footsoldiers in the battle to preserve individual freedoms and ourconstitutional rights. 

I truly believe that. The legal profession isoften derided and it seems that everyday our justice system and theofficials who oversee it are criticized and their motivationsquestioned. That’s fair. 

Our system of justice isn’t perfect andthere’s room for improvement. 

But I believe it remains universallytrue that the great majority of people working in the legalprofessional in the United States are good, decent, hardworkingpeople who try to do the best job they can everyday and do it for theright reasons. 

Those are the same goals that motivate Tom Berte.   

Norm: Thanks once again and good luck with all ofyour future endeavors

Follow Here To Read Norm's Review of The Manipulator